Linger a While
by AllSpiffyAndStuff
Summary: Madison Storm just wants to be known around the world as the king of horror and to make his theme park, HorrorLand, the best it could be. Unfortunately, he's not the best at working with his business partner. [Highly headcanon-based. Contains a /lot/ of canon weilding between books and games]


According to rumor, Kit Katzman mysteriously disappeared when a bizarre figure peeled himself out of a two-way mirror, grabbed Katzman by his blazer, and dragged him through the mirror with him into whatever lay beyond.

Madison Storm described that situation as "not his problem".

Madison Storm had won Kit Katzman's half-made theme park, HorrorLand, in an auction. He loved it - every single bit of it, from the cheesy B-horror-film aesthetics to the rides meant to scare whoever rode them out of their wits. Still, it could be better, though. He had a lot of plans to make it better - to make it up to snuff with his vision.

The first step was to scrub Katzman's name off of literally everything.

"Just - _think_ about it!" Madison gushed to his business partner, a sour-looking man with fluffy black hair, tired eyes, and a black silk top hat. His partner's eyes swiveled over, face in a slight frown, currently busy painting over an engraving of Katzman's signatures on one of the roller coasters. "Being - _finally_ being able to inflict - such suffering onto innocent children...Being able to scare, no, to _terrorize_, to _traumatize_ -! Oh, we're going to have such _fun_ together!"

His partner hummed, less enthusiastic. "Right. And how exactly are you going to employ this park, huh?"

Madison burst out laughing, wiping a tear from his eyes. "Oh, Sydney," He said, throwing an arm around his partner's shoulders (causing him to flinch, splattering paint on to his wine-red dress shirt, which made him scowl). "Sydney, Sydney...Sydney-Sydney-Sydney. You really have no faith in me, do you?"

"I can't imagine there are enough bitter, vindictive people like you to employ in a theme park like this."

"You'd be surprised." Madison's tone was so serious that it made Sydney look over in moderate confusion. Madison simply poked Sydney in the cheek. "I'll always have you, won't I? Imagine it! You on stage, with your little..." He twiddled his fingers on his open hand, "Magic act...Making kids pick cards, pulling elaborately long handkerchief strings from your coat...Making those little brats disappear - sawing them clean in two!" Sydney leaned away, and with another laugh, Madison freed him from his grasp. "Besides, you do owe me a...Pret-ty big favor..."

Sydney turned his head away. Then he looked up at the roller coaster, shoulders falling. "...You want me to put your signature on this?" He asked, gesturing with his paintbrush.

Madison squealed, clasping his hands. "You're _so_ good!"

* * *

The Cosmic Monster Attractor was something that could very generously be described as "scientific". Sydney still couldn't claim he knew how it worked, and he got the feeling Madison didn't either. Still, staring at the thing now as it softly glowed and let out a barely audible hum..Sydney could almost buy the idea that Madison knew what he was doing.

Almost.

"Could'ja go out and buy some more chocolate, Syd? We're all out, and you know how I get without it! Makes me all dizzy." A pause. Sydney didn't respond. "You know you owe me a huge favor! C'mon, it's just one..." Madison turned towards Sydney, only to realize what was consuming his business partner's attention. He beamed with pride, coming up next to him. "Y'like it?" Madison asked, and Sydney nodded thoughtfully. "Knew you would! See, Sydney, I got so..._TIRED_...Looking around, merely using machines to detect monsters..._sooooo_..." He gestured brightly to the Cosmic Monster Attractor, "Why not just bring them to us!? Genius, right? I'm a genius. Tell me I am."

Sydney did not tell him that. Instead, he crossed his arms, eyes sweeping up and down the device. "You're sure you can handle bossing around actual monsters? You're not exactly anything special."

Madison began to laugh. It began as a genuine sound, but soon became something more loud, forced, mocking. Sydney bristled, reaching up and grabbing at the brim of his hat. Madison eventually stopped, and Sydney cautiously relaxed. "_Not anything special_!" Madison said, equal parts amazed and mocking. "Oh, Sydney, you're a _RIOT_! I know - _I KNOW_ \- I'm just a human! But that doesn't mean I can't lord over those monsters - order them around - appeal to their..." He clutched at his heart. "Deeper sentimentalities, their desire to be - seen for who they are, accepted for what they are..."

"You're milking it," Sydney intoned.

Madison rolled his eyes, letting go of his chest, but put his hands on his hips. He looked up at his machine, a small smile growing on his face. "I'm just a human. But those monsters - they're all my people! They'll respect me, no doubt." He paused and took a glance at Sydney, who still didn't look wholly convinced. He elbowed his business partner a few times. "Eh? Eh? Worst comes to worst, you and I will rule this park as kings! Take the nation - no, no, the whole world - by storm!" A beat. Madison beamed. "By storm!" He repeated, as though just realizing the joke he'd made, and then laughing to himself. "By storm..."

Sydney slowly ran a hand down his face.

* * *

As Madison and Sydney patrolled the streets of HorrorLand to ensure everything was in its place, Madison snatched up a bag of popcorn from a monster vendor.

Sydney had to pause, looking the vendor up and down. The vendor was unlike any monster Sydney had laid eyes on before: green scaly skin, curled yellow horns, wicked claws, a tail. They were dressed up in a purple-and-yellow striped polo and a little soda jerk hat, thumbing through a magazine. Eventually, they seemed to realize Sydney's examination of them. "What?" They said, slightly sneering - showing off horribly sharp teeth. "Never seen a Horror?"

"A...Horror?" Sydney asked, skeptical.

"Yeah. A Horror." They pointed one finger up and twirled it in a circle. "What's HorrorLand without Horrors?"

Sydney slowly nodded, looking confused. His wrist was abruptly snatched, and he jumped, his free hand clutching his top hat - only for him to loudly groan upon seeing it was only Madison. "Stop lagging behind!" Madison ordered, yanking Sydney back to his side, and only freeing his partner when he wanted to scoop some more popcorn into his mouth. "Mmm - met the Horrors?" He asked with his mouth full, and Sydney nodded again. "Funny story - turns out, Katzman? He had some -" He swallowed his popcorn, "Mascot costumes in a closet in his office, looked just like these guys! So I was thinking, oh, living costumes, right? No! Real monsters! Hah, isn't that silly? I've never even _heard_ of these things before, so, that must mean the Cosmic Monster Attractor is _EVEN BETTER_ than I thought it was!" He thrust his arms up in glee, inadvertently showering popcorn on the two of them. He was smiling so wide his grin threatened to consume his entire face. "Isn't that just wonderful, Sydney?"

"It's...Something," Sydney said, but he had the smallest of smiles on his face, too. He couldn't lie, HorrorLand had a bit of a certain charm to it, this close to completion. "You've found a venue for my act, I take it?"

"'Course, 'course," Madison said, almost dismissive, as he used his free hand to rummage through the pockets of his long black coat. He yanked out a map, shaking it open and observing it. "First, though, let's cross over to Vampire Village, we need to check and make sure every vampire is pleased, because if they're not..." A short laugh. He shook the map back to being folded (or as close as he could get) before pocketing again and throwing some more popcorn into his mouth. "Mmm - keep up, or I'll let the werewolves get you," He said, starting off.

Sydney shook his head, but wasn't willing to see how serious Madison's threats were today. He kept pace with Madison, though stayed behind him, taking in the sights as Madison led the way. It was nice, sometimes, to be able to take a step back. The duo passed the Stagger Inn, which lit HorrorLand Plaza with a soft glow from its interior lights (a sign on the door signed by someone named Ned said it was currently closed for interior revisions - Sydney hoped that meant decor and that Madison hadn't ordered another entire overhaul of the hotel's lobby _again_). They passed by a movie theater (Sydney had never heard of anything playing before) and quickly passed a gift shop (Chiller House? Sydney couldn't remember either Madison or him hiring a Jonathan Chiller...) before turning a corner and walking on a dark path towards Vampire Village.

"What are we checking?" Sydney finally asked.

"Ac-tually...It's what are you checking!" Madison beamed, looking over his shoulder at Sydney, who appeared confused. Madison straightened up, pointing out into the distance with his free hand. "Count's Castle, I need that inspected, place is crawling with vampires ever since the count came in, and if they're not happy with me, well..." A snicker, and he gestured to himself, as though the consequence should be obvious. Sydney opened his mouth, but Madison just pointed the other way. "Not to mention the Roller Ghoster, I, I need that checked out, make sure it's rickety but still workable, we can't just have anyone dropping dead, not on opening day! That'd be a disaster! Have to wait 'til at _LEAST_ week three for that -" Sydney let out a sputter in an attempt to interrupt, and Madison pointed out in a third direction. "And could you take a ride on the Coffin Cruise please, make sure it connects to Black Lagoon Water Park and you don't just float out into the abyss - does it need more bugs or less bugs? Aw, who am I kidding!" He let out a loud bark of a laugh. "It could _ALWAYS_ use more bugs!"

Sydney put his hands on his hips, tapping his foot, eyebrows furrowed. "You want me to run around being your errand boy!? Fat chance. Look, I have my own act to be practicing -"

"Ah! Ah-ah-ah!" Madison wagged a finger. "No buts, Syd! Come on. Pretty please? For me?" Madison put on his best puppy eyes, blinking at Sydney. "You do owe me _such_ a big favor..."

Sydney rolled his eyes. He indignantly straightened out his top hat. Then, hands balling into fists, he stomped off towards the Count's Castle.

"You're an angel!" Madison yelled after him, waving with his free hand. Then he reached into his popcorn container to get another handful of popcorn...Only to find the container was empty. He did a double take, then grumbled to himself, spiking the container to the ground.

* * *

"...And that, people, is why I decided to...Create HorrorLand. You can't really tell what's real and what isn't around here, can you?" Some giggles. "Although I'm sure you're _DYING_ to find out!" Madison launched into a fit of laughter, almost aggressive in how enthusiastic it was.

From behind the camera, Sydney rolled his eyes, frowning. Sydney was particularly dressed up today: he had on a three-piece black suit with red accents, a red-and-black cape, crisp white gloves, his ever present top hat, and black shoes with white spats. Compared to Madison - who always looked like he just rolled out of bed and smelled like burning - he was the picture of elegance, which is how he liked it. Today was a special occasion, so Madison had promised. As Madison composed himself by inhaling through his teeth (and beginning to tear the place up looking for chocolate), Sydney pulled a flier from his suit coat.

_AMAZ-O'S ASTOUNDING HORRORLAND FRIGHT SHOW!_

Sydney very slightly smiled. Finally. After having to tail Madison around all the time, after having to figure out all the maintenance and listen to Madison prattle about making things even scarier, finally he was just going to go on stage and perform for an audience. It felt like an eternity since he could do that. Sure, it was just a dress rehearsal...But soon, oh, so soon, it'd be for real. Six o'clock at the Hall of Horrors, he could manage that, so long as Madison didn't get anything on his...

...

Sydney pulled out a map from his other pocket, unfolding it, looking it over.

There wasn't any location called the Hall of Horrors.

Sydney grit his teeth.

"Uh, wh-wh - what was I saying?" Madison said as Sydney loudly shut off the camera. Madison swallowed his chocolate and let out a small laugh. "H-hey, now, that's not the end, come on -"

"What is this?" Sydney asked sharply, holding up the flier for Madison to see.

He blinked. "A flier?"

"No -" He pointed to the bottom. "_THIS_."

"Oh, the Hall of Horrors? Great venue. You'll love it. We'll wrap it up by five, you'll have about an hour to get all primped, hair and makeup - ugh, theater kids, so demanding - then again I just hate all kids!"

Sydney rolled his eyes hard, coming up to Madison's desk and slamming his hands on it to get his attention. It worked, Madison flinching as Sydney smacked the map down. "There's no such place as the Hall of Horrors, you little brat."

Madison blinked. He looked down on the map. "Sure there is," He said, twirling his finger around and then poking it on the map. "S'over there, somewhere, look harder."

"I've looked on this entire _MAP_, Storm. There's no such place." Sydney's fingers curled against the desk, ripping the map. "You made it up. Didn't you!?"

Madison Storm was good at many things, but having a convincing poker face was not one of them. He tried to just smile at Sydney, but he eventually let out an exhale. "Okay, okay, so, yeah, I made it up - so what? I mean," A short laugh, "Your act isn't even all that scary. The guillotine trick, the vanishing box, the, the, the mechanical snakes...They're not really..._Terrifying_."

Sydney sputtered for a moment. He stood straight, eyes wide, face in a sneer. "So you _MADE UP_ -!?"

"So you'd shut up about your act! I mean, seriously! Barking like a dog all the time, who could ever work with you!?" Madison stood, and Sydney would have insulted him back, had Madison not said, "Y'know, I could always just toss you back into the gutter. Leave you to be found by your old friend. What was his name, Syd? Frank?"

He paused. "Don't."

"_THAT_ guy knows horror! When he wants to get ahead, he really..._Gets a head_." Madison walked nearer to Sydney, tracing a thumb across his own neck, then lolling his head to the side, tongue playfully sticking out. Sydney went a couple paces back. "Here's the new plan:" Madison's head snapped back up, and he steepled his fingers. "I'll wait 'til it starts raining, dump you out in the dirt, get your nice little suit all messed up, and we'll see how happy he is when he finds you! Huh? You like that idea? Of course," He rolled his eyes away with a giggle. "That's even if he remembers you looking like that."

"_DON'T_."

"Actually!" Madison snapped his fingers. "I have an even better idea! Why don't we remind you exactly what you owe me? That sounds like a - _WONDERFUL_ idea! Since you've been _SO_ rude to me lately..."

Madison leaned forward, and despite Sydney trying his best to skitter away, he plucked the top hat from Sydney's head.

Sydney's eyes widened in a panic, and he lurched forward, making a grab - either for his hat or for Madison's throat, it was hard to tell. Madison simply spun around, sauntering away from Sydney. Sydney stumbled to catch up with him, one hand grasping his head, the other reaching forward...But, as Sydney slowed down, Madison could go further away. Eventually, Sydney stopped. His eyes seemed to dim. His body went still, and his head tilted forward just slightly.

Madison smirked, giving the hat a shake and then swirling one hand over it, showing off for an audience that wasn't there. He reached into the hat - and pulled out a small pure white Holland Lop bunny by the scruff of its neck. Madison smiled wide, baring his teeth. "Aw...Look at you!" He cooed, sticking the hat on top of his own head with a snicker. "I always forget just how _cute_ you are! Frank really has a way with animals, I tell 'ya."

The bunny kicked its legs, fruitlessly trying to kick Madison away. It wriggled and squirmed, biting at the air.

"A-dor-a-ble!" Madison squealed, carrying the bunny over to his desk (and trying to tickle him, which made it bite his hand and Madison loudly yelp) and setting it down on it. "So - here's my new deal, my...Final offer." Another toothy smile. "You're going to stay rrrrr-_IGHT_ -" He smacked a hand on the desk just to make the bunny jump. "_HERE_! With me. And we'll run HorrorLand together! Because you do owe me a..." He inhaled through his teeth, jerking a thumb back to point at the completely frozen body of Sydney. "_Pret-ty_ big favor, over there, making you a full animatronic body...And, I dunno about you, but...t-t-t-t...I don't think you've paid it off. At all. So you owe me! And you'll keep on working on my absolutely glorious theme park -" He threw his hands in the air, "Until we're famous, and adored, and I'm a household name in terror! How's that sound?"

There was silence. Then the bunny thumped a foot against the desk.

Madison blinked as though remembering something. "Oh, right right right, you need..." He took the top hat off of his head and set it down on the desk like a servant may present a crown to a king. He bowed to the bunny afterward, just to milk it a bit further. The bunny let out a sort of sneeze (or maybe a huff?) and hopped up beside the hat. There was a sort of shimmery haze.

"Whatever you say..." The bunny said. Then, quietly, "...Jerk."

If Madison heard that, he didn't mention it. He giddily clapped his hands ("Oh, hooray!") and picked up the bunny and the hat again. This time, the bunny didn't fight. Madison came up to Sydney's robotic body, tilting Sydney's head up with his elbow before setting the bunny on to Sydney's head and placing the hat over the bunny. There was a pause, then the shimmery haze seemed to enter Sydney through the eyes. His eyes lit back up with life. He put a hand to the side of his head and shook his head out a bit. He flexed the fingers on his other hand. But suddenly, Madison threw an arm around Sydney, and everything about Sydney's demeanor soured. "This'll also give you loads of time to think of a better stage name, 'cause - really, Sydney? Amaz-O? That's..." He began to laugh to himself. "Oh, that's, that's so sad. I hate it. I really, really do."

"Yeah, well, I hate this theme park," Sydney grumbled just under his breath, crossing his arms and looking away. "So I guess we're even."

* * *

Madison woke up at about noon, as he always did. He yawned and stretched, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. He looked around for his goggles and earpiece, only to find both were still on his head. Whoops! Ah, well - neither had broken, so it was all fine. He hopped out of bed and put his black coat over the outfit he'd fallen asleep in, then pulled on some shoes and left his room. "Up and at'em, Sydney!" He shouted, walking through the hall of his little sanctuary and throwing open the door to his business partner's room. "One more go-around, maybe two, maybe five, and then we'll open up the..." His voice began to trail. "Gates...?"

The room was impeccably clean, but also impeccably bare. All the magic props and the giant carpet bag his partner would store them in was gone. The bed was made, the sheets crisp and clean. On the pillow was a playing card.

Madison frowned, coming up and swiping the card from the pillow. He turned it over. The three of clubs. Madison flicked his wrist, and the card suddenly unfolded into a piece of paper.

It was a note.

_And for my next trick, I'll make our partnership disappear!_

_\- Amaz-O_

Next to his partner's signature was a doodle of Sydney's head, one eye winked, tongue sticking out.

He'd ran. He'd packed up all his tricks, taken the animatronic body Madison had labored over - and he'd RAN!

Madison's fist clenched around the note - which, somehow, made it ignite. Madison yelped and jumped back, the note cleanly burning away. "How does he _DO THAT_?!" Madison shouted, stomping a foot in frustration, teeth beginning to grit. Aggressively, he felt through the pockets of his coat, and he pulled out a chocolate bar. He tore the wrapper off and then chomped into it like a wolf may bite into a prey animal. "Pull it together, Storm," He told himself, mouth full, sticking the chocolate back into his pocket. "Not on opening day. You've got a _world_ to _terrorize_."

He turned around, marching out of Sydney's room, slamming the door behind him.

He'd show that idiot magician. That stupid little bunny didn't stand a chance without him. Soon, everyone would know him - _HIM_, Madison Storm, creator of HorrorLand, king of the monsters, supreme over all - and who'd even care about some lousy cursed stage magician anyway?

Nobody.

That's who.

"I'm the star of this show," Madison said. A smile came on to his face, but not one of his perky, scatterbrained smiles. This one was sinister. "I'll make _sure_ nobody ever forgets it _again_!"

And, with that out of his system, he marched off towards HorrorLand Plaza.


End file.
